Surprises
by I am the girl in the corner
Summary: Abby is conspiring against Tony to throw him a surprise party for his long forgotten birthday when a phone call and a kidnapping throw a spanner in the works. Rated T just in case, for violence. Now complete.
1. Chapter 1

"Finally, it's finished." Special Agent Anthony 'Tony' DiNozzo thought to himself leaning back in his chair. The case was closed, his report was written and sitting on Gibbs' desk, waiting for him to get in the next morning and all without letting on to the fact that it was his birthday 2 days ago. He closed his eyes and sighed. One of these days he really should tell somebody, but the possibility of them agreeing to go out for a few drinks with him out of pity was too high and too painful. No, it was better this way. There was no reason for anyone to care anyway, the last real birthday he had had was just before his mum died. Tony got up from his desk grabbing his backpack on the way out. Yes, this was better, he would go to the local bar, have a few stiff drinks, then head home to spend what remained of the night with Magnum until he fell asleep.

The next morning he walks into the bullpen where he is met by Ducky who appears to require an immediate audience down in autopsy. He dumps his bag next to his desk and dutifully followed the elderly M.E. down to autopsy.

"So, what's up Ducky?"

"Tony," he slowly replied, "why did you not tell anyone about your birthday?"

"How did you find out it was my birthday, Ducky?" Tony replied avoiding the question.

"I was looking through your file and noticed, but don't try that avoiding game with me, dear boy, it will not get you far."

"Well, we were busy with the case and I guess it just slipped my mind." He shrugged tentatively.

"Anthony, we both know that is not the real reason, now, out with it."

"Fine, Duck, I didn't tell anyone because I would have felt obligated to do something with them and I didn't want them to agree to have a few drinks with me out of pity, or worse, just not show at all. That would be worse than spending my birthday processing a murder scene, then to go home and spending the evening with me Magnum and some beer. I just couldn't take the pity or the rejection."

"When was the last time you had a proper birthday, Anthony?" Ducky asked softly.

Pain flashed across his face briefly before returning to the jovial mask that they all knew to well. "Well, it would have had to have been just before my mum died."

"Oh, Tony, I am sorry."

"What for, Ducky?" Tony asked, feigning ignorance in hopes of returning this conversation to a more comfortable ground.

"I am sorry that none of us ever thought to ask, that you feel that we would not care or would just pity you, but you are short guessing your friends, my boy, and they do not deserve that any more than you deserve to spend your birthday alone in your apartment."

"Ah, don't worry about it, Ducky. I'm fine, but I won't be for long if I don't get back up there soon."

Ducky smiled at this and let the younger man go, his mind already planning a nice little surprise for their friend and he knew just the person to help him fix it. He chuckled a little; Tony would be in for a surprise by the time Abby was done.

As Tony came back up to the bullpen he heard the familiar call coming from his boss' mouth.  
"Gear up. We got a dead Lieutenant at the park."

Tony hurried over to his desk grabbing his gun, badge and bag as he ran over to the elevator jumping in just before the doors slid shut.

They got to the park in record time, as Ziva had insisted on driving. He hopped out of the car and stood still for a minute trying to get his stomach to settle down. Ziva sauntered over and gave him a cheeky smile.

"Something the matter, Tony?" She asked coyly.

"No, Zee-vah, I am fine. I mean why would I not be it is not like I just had one of the scariest experiences of my life!" Tony replied his sarcasm coming to the fore.

"DiNozzo, David, ya coming?" Gibbs said.

"On your six, boss." Tony said standing up quickly and following Gibbs.

Ziva merely followed in silence.

"Right, DiNozzo bag and tag, David, photos, McGee sketches."

The elevator dinged as the MCRT team walked back into the bullpen. Tony and Ziva were arguing again this time about music.

"You never told me you were into music Tony." Ziva said.

"You never asked." Tony replied smartly.

"What type of music?" She asked smoothly, stepping fractionally closer to Tony as she did.

Tony just ignored her and said, "that is for me to know and you to never find out."

Ziva snorted and walked over to her desk glaring at Tony over the top of her computer. An email from Abby suddenly popped up on Ziva's computer simultaneously with one popping up on McGee's. She was asking them to go down to the lab and make sure Tony stayed in the bullpen. At the same time Gibb's cell phone rang. It was Abby giving him the same message.

"I'm going for lunch" McGee said, standing up from his desk. "You want anything guys."

A chorus of no's resounded followed by a crack from Tony.

"Wow, McPorkchop and they think I eat." He smirked at the now blushing Probie.

McGee hurried over to the elevator, his head down. Gibb's just got up and went to follow McGee.

"Where you going, boss?" Tony asked in a petulant voice.

"Coffee run." was the monotone reply.

"I also must go, Tony." Ziva said quietly. "I need to check with Ducky about something."

"Oh, okay then." Tony sighed and leaned back in his chair. Then sat forward again, he could at least have something to show Gibb's when he got back.

Down in Abby's lab the excited Goth was bouncing wildly in front of her computer her piggy tails swinging madly back and forth. When she heard the elevator ding, goodness only knows how with her music so loud, she whirled around in a blur of black hair and white lab coat her smile at full blast,

"Gibbs! Yay, you guys came. O.K. so this is the deal, Tony had a birthday a few days ago but nobody knew or has ever know except maybe you Gibbs because you know everything, but nobody knew and Tony's last birthday celebration was just before his mum died and Ducky and I are planning a party..."

"Abs. Abby!" Gibbs yelled. "Slow down. What's this all about?"

"Well Tony has never celebrated his birthday or told anybody it is his birthday since just before his mum died and when Ducky found out and confronted Tony he decided to throw him a late surprise party and enlisted my help because I am good with stuff like that. Anyway, I need you guys to help in setting a date seeing as you are all coming."

"Okay, Abby. Firstly when are you planning on having this ideally?" McGee asked, sounding slightly confused.

"Well, I was hoping tonight." She replied smiling sheepishly, her eyes glowing with hope and enthusiasm. An enthusiasm which apparently no-one could bear to smother because they all said they were available, and asked what time. Abby's grin stretched from ear to ear as she explained her plans.

_Vrrrr, vrrrr. _Tony's cell phone vibrated on his belt, still on silent from his attempt at uninterrupted silence and concentration required for his paperwork spree last night. He yanked it off his belt slightly annoyed at the interruption.

"DiNozzo." He said, his customary greeting on his work phone, it made him sound official, made people take him slightly more seriously than his other greeting of Hello Very Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo speaking, how can I help you? Also it was considerably quicker. However the voice on the phone sounded anything but serious.

"Ahhhh, the legendary DiNozzo at last." The voice said tauntingly.

"Who are you, what do you want?" Tony demanded.

"Well, Tony, may I call you Tony? I would like to propose a deal." The voice replied. Tony shook his head, may I call you Tony? How corny can this guy get and he would have told him were he not starting to get a very bad feeling about this.

"What kind of deal?" He said suspiciously.

"The kind that says you meet me, alone, at the corner of Maple and Ann Street in 25 minutes or you won't like what happens to this little girl and her mummy I found. Say hello sweetie."

"Daddy?" she said tentatively, sounding scared. Tony froze, his blood draining from his face as the voice registered. "Daddy, is that you?"

"Jessica, is that you honey, are you all right? Talk to me sweetie." Tony felt beads of sweat start to form on his head.

"Tony?" a new voice called, "He has a gun, we're tied up but currently unharmed."

"Lorraine, Lorri! If you hurt her…" Tony's words were now directed at the disembodied voice at the other end of the line.

"Oh, she is fine." The leering voice on the other end of the phone said. "As for how long she remains that way is entirely up to you."

The phone clicked and the dull drone of the dial tone filled his ears. Tony sat there for a minute staring at the phone in his hands before he leapt up from his seat grabbing his bag, badge, and gun before running over to the elevator. He jabbed his finger into the button several times like that alone could make it come faster. The doors finally opened and the rest of Team Gibbs stepped out taking note of Tony's pale face. Gibbs was the first to speak.

"What is it, DiNozzo?"

"They've got them, boss, they've got them, I have to go now, quickly, get out of the way." Tony muttered.

"Who has who, DiNozzo? What are you talking about?"

"I don't know who has her they just rung me and said I have twenty-five minutes to meet him or he will hurt Jessica and Lorri. I need to go now, so will you please get out of the way." His anger coming to the fore as he let the last shards of his permanent mask slip away, revealing the raw emotion in his core. Who ever it was, this news had shaken him to the entirely.

"Who is Jessica, and who is Lorri?" He persisted ignoring the impatience on his senior field agent's face as he continued to block his path into the elevator.

"My daughter and her mother," he yelled, "now get out of the way, now!"

"Okay, DiNozzo I want to hear the whole story but I realise that right you do not have the time, so I will just come with you, you can tell me on the way."

"No! I have to go alone."

"DiNozzo." Gibbs said warningly.

"Fine, you won't get out of way, I'll take the stairs."

"Stop!" Gibb's voice had a commanding air to it, "I have a plan okay, Ziva, you and Tim go now to that address and set up a good vantage point in a nearby building, I will go with you and be close enough to be of assistance with out being close enough to be recognised. We will get there in 5 minutes if we push it. DiNozzo you leave with us now but take your car and drive there at a more sedate pace. With luck we will be able to grab the two girls and shoot the guy."

"Okay," came the simple answer. Gibb's was impressed by the trust he saw in those eyes, this man was entrusting him with the lives of his daughter and her mother.

"Right, let's go."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Gibbs, Ziva and McGee got to the meeting place in just over five minutes and had a Ziva and McGee secured in a good lookout in another two. Gibbs went across the street and into a small store around the corner. He could just see the meeting place from the corner of the store and was just in hearing range. Right on cue a car pulled up and about one minute later Tony pulled up in his car. They both got out and walked towards each other.

"Where are they?" came Tony's voice, low and dangerous.

"In the car." was the flippant response.

"Why?"

"Because you ruined my life on this day 4 years ago."

"Chuck? Chuck Randall?" Tony exclaimed. "You deserved to go away! You killed 11 children all of them under 10, put another one in hospital and shot me. You got a life sentence, how did you get out of jail?"

"Now that would be telling, wouldn't it?" He replied with a smirk. "So this is what is going to happen. Jessica and Lorraine are going to get out of the car and they are going to start walking down the street and into that shop just around the corner. You are going to get in the car and shut the door. Jessica and Lorraine already know what to do and the consequences for not doing so, however you don't so I will tell you. If you do not do just that I will shoot them dead before you or your backup that is undoubtedly very near by, can shoot me. Do you understand?"

"Yes." Tony replied his voice low.

"Good then." Chuck walked over to the car and opened the door. Lorraine got out first followed by Jessica. As Jessica got out though he picked her and lifted her above his head so they couldn't kill him. Tony then walked over and got in the car. Chuck kicked the door shut, and then walked over to the driver's door, opened it and got in. He turned the car on and put Jessica down on the pavement. flooring it as he did so, the door slamming shut as he went off down the street. Gibbs reached the corner just as Ziva and McGee were getting to Lorri and Jessica.

"You all right?" he asked the girls.

"Yes came the shaken reply.

"Good, we are going to need you to come back to headquarters with us."

As soon as the elevator doors opened Gibbs was barking out orders that were promptly being finished by his team.

"McGee,"

"Tracking Tony's phone, on it boss."

"Ziva,"

"Bolo out on the car got it Gibbs."

"You two," Gibbs said gesturing to the girls with his finger, "with me."

"Can I get you anything?" Gibbs asked as he led them into the conference room.

"No thank-you." Lorri replied.

"Right. Now then Lorri was it?"

"Yes."

"Okay then Lorri, I need to know everything that he said to you and everything he, and you, did."

"Right, well I was taking Jessica down to the park when someone, I am assuming it was him, grabbed me from behind and held a rag to my face. I saw Jessica getting the same treatment just before the lights went out but someone was still holding me up so there must have been two people. The next thing I remember is waking up in a well lit room, tastefully decorated, but with no windows. About five or ten minutes later he came in and I asked him what his name was and why us, why he was doing this. You know the corny lines you are sure you would never say until it happens. He hustled us out to a car, a four door, dark blue, 2007 Ford Focus." She noticed Gibb's quizzical look and grinned. "Spend much time with Tony and you get to know cars, Agent Gibbs. Anyway, he told us to get in the car and put our seat belts on. Once we were all in the car he told us that when he opened our door we had to get out and walk down the street without looking back or he would shoot us. When he stopped the car he left his door open so we could hear him. Tony asked him where we were and he said in the car. Then Tony asked him why and he said that Tony ruined his life this day 4 years ago. That seemed to ring a bell because Tony then called him Chuck Randall and said that he killed 11 kids put one in hospital, shot Tony and he was supposed to be in prison for life. The rest you know." She sat back and waited for Gibbs to process the information. She could almost see the wheels turning and guess what he was going to say next, sure enough it came.

"You don't seem very upset about all of this, Lorri." Thank-fully she had seen it coming so she didn't blow up in the guys face; still she took a minute to get her emotions under control before replying and schooled her face like Tony had taught her.

"Agent Gibbs, right now I don't think I have ever been this upset and stressed in my life but that would not help Jessica, Tony or you. Tony always said there was a time and place for every emotion and that if anything ever happened that the most important thing was to breathe and not let my emotions get in the way of helping. In a few hours I will probably break down completely but for now," her voice broke, "that would not help anyone." Gibbs just shook his head, trust DiNozzo to teach his girlfriend how to keep a clear head, but then she was more than that, she was the mother of his child and that was what made the difference.

"Alright then, I believe you. We need you to stay in the building though. If you need anything you remember where to find us, if you don't everyone else does." With that he got up and left.

As the car pulled to a stop outside a house in the middle of the suburbs a man came out the door and yanked open his car door.

"Hey, nice Hulk impression but I would suggest laying off it before you break the door, that would cost a lot to fix." He couldn't help it; it was in his nature to annoy, so he half expected the rough manner of the Hulk yanking him out of the car and slamming him up against it. He could hear Chuck telling the guy to calm down. The guy let him up off the car and Tony brushed off his suit.

"Careful, this Armani that you were crushing you know." The guys face flushed and before he knew it he had socked him in the jaw, hoisted him up on his shoulder and dumped him in a spare room. Within five minutes he was up against the bed posts and on the floor with a cloth being pushed over his face. Seconds later the lights went out and Tony saw nothing more.


	3. Chapter 3

As Tony came to the first thing he noticed was that he had been moved. The room was still well lit but as he gingerly turned his head to look out the window all he could see was desert for miles. A few days in that heat and he would be dead even if he escaped. Tony took a deep breath and assessed his condition. He was kneeling against a pole with his ankles tied behind it and his hands tied to a ring at the back of the pole, at the same level that the small of his back was, effectively keeping him immobile, vulnerable and uncomfortable. His hands felt slightly numb, the rope was only tight enough to reduce mobility and feeling in his hands but not enough to make them go completely to sleep and need possible medical attention. Tony's back was already starting to ache and his jaw was throbbing from where the Hulk had hit him.

"Crap," he muttered. "Crap, crap, crap," he added a few more times for good measure. This was not good. As the door started to open his only thought was that Gibbs had better get there soon.

Gibbs paused for a moment before getting out of the elevator, dreading what he knew was coming. He shook himself slightly and walked into Abby's lab.

"Gibbs!" came the expected cry. "What happened? Where is he? Is he alright? What am I talking about? If you knew where he was he wouldn't be missing and how can you know if he is alright."

"Abs, Abby!" Gibbs yelled. "Calm down, breathe. We were going to try and get Tony's family but the guy got a drop on us. We have the girls but they took Tony. Tony will be fine. He always is, you know that Abs. Now what have you got?"

Abby took a deep breath. "I checked the bottom of their shoes and there was nothing there that could help in any way, same goes for their clothing, the blood tests came back negative, but chloroform dissipates pretty fast."

"Good work, Abby." He turned to leave, but then turned back and added, "We'll find him."

"McGee, what have you got?" Gibbs barked.

"I got a trace on Tony's cell; his phone is on the side of Interstate 20 Frontage Rd, Hudson Oaks, Texas."

"Texas!" Ziva spoke up. "How the heck did they get him to Texas?"

"Well if they flew, then drove..., it has been about 5 hours now." McGee replied.

"Gear up."

Tony shook his head slowly, forcing himself back into the world. He grunted slightly, he still couldn't stretch his back out and his fingers were even more dead than before. Damn it. Slowly, he stretched the fingers on his hands out, flexing them. He would need those if he was to escape any time soon. Tony looked down and winced as his body started to make the numerous bruises known. If he could just reach his belt, rule number nine. Most people didn't check belt buckles, or even remove the belt. He glanced down and swore to himself. Unfortunately Chuck did seem to have a brain in his head. Even if he had been able to reach it his belt was gone and so were his shoes. There went that plan; but all good agents have a plan B.

"Plan B. Umm," Tony muttered to himself, "oh yeah, Gibbs. Well at least this one should work."

"Tony is going to be so ticked off." McGee smirked.

"Why?" Ziva asked.

"Cause it's a Lear jet." Gibbs replied.

"Ah, I see."

"How long till we get there Boss?" This question came from McGee.

"A very, very long time, McGee."

"Right."

Soon they went back to staring out of the window. Ziva opened her laptop to check the bolo.

"Gibbs."

"Yeah."

"Got a hit on the bolo, apparently a local LEO saw a car that matches the description and license plate abandoned on a side road off the I 20."

"Isn't that where we're going?" McGee asked.

"Yes, it seems we have a trail, Gibbs."

Three hours later they arrived at the site indicated by the GPS in Tony's phone. Gibbs pulled the car off to the side, causing a miniature dust storm as he did so; piling out of the car the three donned gloves and started looking for the phone.

"Boss, I found it," McGee called. "His last call was to you, Boss, last call received is from an unidentified number, I can try and trace it from my laptop."

Climbing back into the car Gibbs careened off down the highway. One and a half miles further down the road they were swerving round the corner and onto a dirt track. The car had been towed; however they still stopped to look for any evidence that may have been missed by the local LEO.

"Anything, McGee?" Gibbs asked.

"Nothing other than some tire tracks and there are not enough of them left to print."

"Let's go."

The door was opening again. Tony blinked slowly, struggling to regain consciousness.

"What do you want, Chuck?" Even to his own ears, his voice sounded fuzzy.

"What do I want, Tony? I want the last four years of my life back. I want my wife back and I want my son back. Will I get any of that, oh no. Cause nobody gives a damn about me. I am nothing to anybody, a monster that kills children. Well I have a news flash for you, my son was taken away from me by some idiotic drunk and nobody did anything. He was put in prison for 12 months for killing my wife and baby boy. Well guess what Tony; if I can't have mine they can't have theirs. What do you think I want with you Tony? I want to make you pay for every second of my life that was wasted in that miserable waste bucket. I want to make someone pay for the injustice that was done to me. Do you know what, Tony? You just volunteered to be that someone."

Tony just looked at him and said the first thing that came to mind while ignoring his complaining body and the little voice at the back of his head telling him not to be such an idiot.

"You're crazy."

Chuck just smiled maniacally and replied affably "I know."

Tony's small grin that he had managed to find, wavered as he realised just how far gone the man was, all of this, his whole life thrown away because his wife and son were killed. He could almost find it in himself to pity the man, almost; after all, the man did shoot him. Tony just kept looking at him, trying to judge his next move. This meant that the inevitable blow had been anticipated when it came but it still knocked all the air out of him, leaving him gasping for air as he tried to hold back a groan. Chuck didn't hit him again. Tony, reminding himself of the advice given in those lessons at FLETC and the experience he had at being beaten. After all, let's face it he had a way with people. Tony smiled at himself and stretched out the best he could, considering the circumstances.

In the next room, Chuck stood at the bench next to the giant of a man Tony had nicknamed 'The Hulk' and sharpened his knife.


	4. Chapter 4

"McGee, how long has it been since Tony was kidnapped?" Ziva wanted to know.

"Uh, about nine hours."

"Gibbs, how much further are we going to go down this road, for all we know they switched cars, turned around and went back onto the interstate?" Ziva questioned him.

Gibbs's only response was to push the pedal to the floor.

"Gibbs!" Ziva yelled. "I understand your need to pursue this further, but it is a waste of our time. We could have local LEO's check out the road while we return to DC and continue to investigate the case. This trail has gone cold and we need to find a new one."

Gibbs just glanced at her but eased off the accelerator.

"Fine, ten minutes." He barked at her.

Ten minutes later and there was still not a sign, and as much as he hated to do it they needed to go back. Swinging the car around with a move that would have impressed a stunt driver, Gibbs raced back down the road, now intent only on reaching the airport quickly.

** xxxxxx**

It took Gibbs only three hours to have them back in DC, a record even for him, having shaved an hour off the previous time lapse and then only ten minutes to get from the airport to NCIS.

"McGee, look deeper into Randall's files. I want to know every time he so much as sneezed from the moment he was born, up until now."

"Ziva, Lori said that she thought there might have been second man. Find him. Find any video footage from where Lori and Jess were snatched."

"Where are you going, Boss?"

"Coffee."

McGee glanced up and met Ziva's eyes, shaking his head slightly. It was unbelievable how much coffee that man drank.

"Whatever keeps him going though, right Ziva?"

She just smirked at him and returned to her work.

**xxxxxx**

Upon arriving back at NCIS, Gibbs quickly glanced in to make sure that what remained of his team were not saying anything that could prove fun before heading down to Abby's lab.

**xxxxxx**

As Gibbs stepped out of the elevator, something seemed out of place. Abby was at the door and squeezing him with a hug that would rival a bear, before Gibbs could even speak, but that wasn't it. He just wrapped his arms around her, silently giving her support, before disentangling himself and steeling himself for a fresh onslaught of questions.

"Gibbs! What happened? Did you find anything? What have you got for me?" She rattled off; it was amazing how fast the girl could speak.

"Whoa, Abby, slow down. Nothing happened; We found his phone and a tire track. Tire track was too worn away to be able to get a print, the wind blew most of it away." He held out the cell phone and she took it, turning around in a swirl of white lab coat and black hair.

Gibbs tapped her shoulder and she turned back to face him.

"Huh. Oh, hi Gibbs, you're still here."

"Yep, you forgot something."

"What?"

Gibbs just held out the Caff-Pow in his other hand. Abby's face lit up and she thanked him before turning back to the work at hand.

Gibbs walked to the door and called back over his shoulder, "Abby, loose the silence."

He couldn't help but grin as he heard the ear splitting sounds of Brain-Matter pour out of the lab behind him.

**xxxxxx**

The glass doors that led into Autopsy slid open with a quiet swish as Gibbs approached.

"Hey, Duck, what have you got for me?"

"Ah, Jethro. I was expecting your visit. Am I to assume you are here for my professional opinion on Mr. Randall?"

"Yeah, Duck."

"Well, I took the liberty of pulling the case file, what the man did was despicable, reminds me of the time in Vietnam, the village I was staying at..."

"Duck."

"What, oh yes, well, the man is severely unstable. Looking at his past it would appear the demise of his wife and young son in a hit and run accident led to him finally, uh, losing it. He has a, if I can't have my son you can't have yours attitude, which led to the horrific murders that he committed. Anthony was the one who put him away and has become Randall's focus point, the one he is blaming for all of it. The unstable condition of his mind makes it justified. He is dangerous and vengeful. The sooner we find young Anthony, the better."

"Got it, Duck. Thanks."

**xxxxxx**

"McGee, what have you got?"

"Grew up in Texas, lived with his Mother, a Sierra Randall, Father took off when he was six. Mother died five years ago. Married once. Had one son, both were killed in a hit and run accident five years ago, about a month before the mother. Security cameras indicated the driver was drunk, he was charged and sentenced to 12 months in prison. A year after that he started kidnapping and killing boys the same age as his son was. NCIS was brought in on the case when he kidnapped the son of a Major stationed at Quantico. It took two weeks to locate the boy, he was hospitalised with broken bones. Tony was shot in the thigh by Randall during the rescue. He was hospitalised for a week then checked himself out AMA. Randall was sentenced to 140 years in prison with no bail."

"Ziva?"

"A small store down the road was the only footage available. It did not catch the attack however 1 minute before the incident two men were seen walking down the street. One of them appears to be Randall; the other one Abby is running through facial recognition."

"Gibbs!" McGee called quickly. "I was looking through his bank records. Nothing jumped out at me until this; He stood and pulled some pages up onto the plasma. "Five years ago when his mother died he inherited $5, 394 and the family home, a ranch in Texas."

"Good work, McGee."

Walking up to MTAC, he turned and spoke, "Ya coming?"

**xxxxxx**

"Get me satellite images for this address." Gibbs barked, handing the closest tech a scrap of paper.  
Within seconds the three of them were looking at a large wooden house thirty minutes from the I 20.

"That window, at the back of the house, can you get any closer?"

The tech spun back around to face his computer again and he proceeded to type rapidly, shifting the satellite view until they were looking almost straight into the window.

"Tony!" McGee turned to look at Ziva as she breathed his name.

Gibb's gut was niggling at him and he ordered the image to be panned back out to a full view. Two vehicles pulled up outside the house, and ten men wearing black all heavily armed steadily approached the house. Three pairs of eyes watched the house as the men broke in the door. Four minutes later they came back out and drove off.

"The window," Gibbs barked, the order hastily obeyed by the nervous technician.

"Where is he?" Ziva just looked steadily at McGee.


	5. Chapter 5

"Vance, we need to go back to Texas."

"You were just there, Gibbs. As I am sure you are aware, we do operate on a budget."

"We've got a fix on Tony's location and now we need to go check it out."

"Very well, but this is the last time."

His final words were met with nothing as Gibbs walked out.

** xxxx**

"McGee." Gibbs barked. "Two tickets to Texas, ASAP. Ziva, I hope your bags are still packed."

"Uh, boss."

"Yeah, McGee."

"Am I staying here because...?" At Gibbs glare he hastily amended what he was about to say, "Because I need to be here keeping you updated. Right, got it Boss."

Gibbs turned and smirked, walking towards the elevator as he did so.

**xxxx**

"Whatd'ya got Abs?"

"Gibbs! Okay, so the last call made to Tony's cell was from a payphone a couple of streets from where the meet had been set up. I pulled security footage from the area and confirmed Randall made the call. The last call made from his cell was to Ziva's cell, the day before. I managed to pull enough of a face off two of the men that attacked the house to run through facial recognition. The results came back for one Josef Pablo and Alejandro Mumosa. Pablo was charged with drug trafficking three years ago but the case could not be proven. One year later he was charged with assault but again got off. Mumosa has two unpaid speeding tickets and a parking violation."

"Good work, Abs." He pressed a kiss into her hair and turned away.

"Gibbs, what about my Caff-Pow?"

"Beside you, Abby." Gibbs grinned and walked out the door.

"How does he do that?"

** xxxx**

Tony lay on his side against the wall and concentrated on breathing. Crap. It had not hurt this much to breathe since he had the plague.

In and out. Just focus, no need to do anything else right then, he had heard Randall and his pal die as well as the guys that stormed the place leave, just breathe. Coughing weakly he groaned. Every muscle in his body was screaming at him to rest. He still could not believe he had gotten out of it.

_Flashback_

_He could hear the sound of wood splintering as many shoulders made light work of the door at the front of the house. Tony desperately pulled at the ropes binding him to the pole, begging them to loosen up. Miraculously they did. Ignoring the rope still binding his feet, Tony threw himself across the room and out of the view from the window. Sitting up, he clumsily untied the rope binding his feet, fingers still partially numb from being tied so tight. Lying himself flat against the wall, Tony held his breath till all noise had faded back into just the quiet chirping of the crickets._

_End Flashback_

Tony blinked slowly, his eyelids feeling like lead and he focused on breathing. If he could just focus on that, nice, even, in and out action he would be ok. He could feel his eyelids sinking lower and lower till they did not open again. Finally, for the first time in over two days, Tony stretched out and allowed the darkness to overtake his body.

** xxxx**

"McGee." Gibbs gave the subtle command.

"Okay, Boss. I got you and Ziva a flight that leaves in half an hour from the National Airport. Economy class, ETA is 1500 hours."

"Right, I want everything there is on the guys Abby ID'ed, I want to know how they were connected and why they were after Randall. Ziva, gear up."

McGee gave a sigh and turned back to his computer, fingers already flying across the keys. He would go and see Abby later, maybe she would have something.

** xxxx**

Tony's eyes flickered as he struggled back into consciousness. Forcing his eyes open, he stood up and groaned. Gingerly, Tony prodded his chest with his fingers, wincing as they hit a fracture in his ribs.

"Great, just great. I throw myself across a room, no problem. Can I walk to get out of the room? Of course not, okay come on now, enough sulking, just move."

Tony took a step forward and fell back against the wall, wincing again when his arm jarred against it. He took a deep breath and another step. He screwed his eyes shut and breathed slowly, riding out the pain. Opening his eyes, he slowly moved his foot again, then the other. Left then right, then left then right again. Another step, less excruciating this time and he had reached the door. Grasping the handle with his right hand, he twisted it and grinned when it opened. Randall obviously thought he would not have been able to get out of the ropes. He gave the door a small tug then kicked it the rest of the way.

** xxxx**

Gibbs tapped his foot on the ground, glancing around. They were able to jump the queue due to their agent status but it still took way too long to clear customs. First they had to x-ray the bags then they had to declare their guns and he had to convince Ziva that she had to declare her knives as well. Then they had to go through the metal detector while Gibbs prayed that Ziva had given up all of her weapons. Finally they had their bags back and were leaving the airport.  
"Ziva, find us a rental car."  
"On it, Gibbs."

** xxxx**

Back at the bullpen, McGee was still trying to dig up information on the two guys. Finally he found something. Clicking on the link, McGee started to read, his eyes widening in horror as the full importance of what he was reading set in. Grabbing for his phone he dialled Gibbs number. No answer.  
"Come on, Boss, pick up."


	6. Chapter 6

_"Come on, Boss, pick up."  
_**  
xxxx**_  
_  
Gibbs walked over to one of the ever present taxi's waiting in the queue. Knocking on the window, he waited for the window to come down then leaned in and spoke to the anxious man inside.

"Do you know where the nearest car rental place is?"

"Yes, sir."

"Don't call me sir, I work for a living."

"Sure, Mr.?"

"Special Agent Gibbs."

"Right, right, of course."

"Can you take us there?"

"Where?" Gibbs just glared at him. "Oh, oh, yes, the car rental place. Yes, Si-Special Agent Gibbs."

Gibbs merely turned and beckoned to Ziva.

When she reached the taxi pulling the baggage cart along behind her, Gibbs motioned for the driver to pop the trunk, moving over to help Ziva stow their few bags, he sent her to return to trolley. As soon as they were both seated the driver took off. Within ten minutes they were at the rental place.

"How much do we owe you?" Ziva asked.

"Ah, $15.75, ma'am."

Pulling the change out of her wallet, she gave it to him and replied. "Don't call me ma'am."

"Yes, miss."

Ziva just shook her head as the taxi driver pulled away. Noticing that Gibbs was already at the door to reception, she hastened her pace to catch up with him. Once inside she found him signing out a car for an indefinite period. The minimum rental period was however three days which cost $150. Gibbs just shrugged inwardly and put it on his card. Making sure to ask for a receipt the two of them were shown out to the car by the receptionist. Five minutes later they were nothing but dust as Gibbs headed for the Interstate.

** xxxx**

McGee punched the familiar numbers into his phone once again. One ring. Two.

"Gibbs"

"Boss! Okay so I did what you asked and those two guys don't exist. Their real names are Dmitri Mihailov and Andrei Adreev. Boss, they're, ex-KGB. It was a hit, not on Randall though, it was on his buddy, one, Lance Corporal Andrew Nixon, dishonourably discharged in 2005, suspected of stealing state secrets. If it was a double cross it would explain the Russian boys coming after them."

"Good work, McGee."

"Uh, Boss?" he was left listening to nothing but a dial tone. Shaking his head, McGee hung up his phone and turned back to his computer.

** xxxx**

"McGee says two of the guys that stormed the house were ex-KGB after Randall's buddy, an ex-Lance Corporal Andrew Nixon." Gibbs said, seeing the question in Ziva's eyes.

"I thought they were Spanish."

"Nope, fake names, fake ID's, probably fake faces too."

"Why were they after, Nixon?"

"Nixon was suspected of selling state secrets, if the boys in black were the buyers, it could be a double cross or a deal gone wrong."

"Ah." Ziva turned and stared out the window. "Are we almost there, Gibbs?"

Gibbs turned to glare at her.

"Right." Ziva turned and grabbed her backpack from the back seat. Pulling out her book she settled down for a long drive.

xxxx

"Abby?" McGee walked into the silent lab. "Abby?"

"Yeah, McGee."

Walking through the lab he found Abby curled up under her desk. Crouching down in front of her, he spoke.

"Oh, Abs. Come here." Sniffing, she crawled out from under the desk and into his lap. "Shhhhh. Tony will be fine. It's alright. You know Tony, nothing could ever kill him."

"That's not true, McGee, Tony's not immortal and he has well and truly exhausted his luck. Do you know how many times he has almost died? There was the thing with the plague, the time in Somalia, not to mention the countless times he has managed to get himself shot. He has more lives than a cat, McGee but I think they're all gone." She broke off with a sob. McGee pulled her closer to him and rocked her slowly as one would a child.

"He won't die, Abby. Do you know why?" When she shook her head, he spoke again. "Because, Gibbs didn't give him permission."

Abby giggled softly before looking up at his face. "Thanks, McGee."

"Any time, Abs, any time."

xxxx

A cloud of dust rose up into the air as Gibbs pulled the car to a halt outside Tony's location. The little paint left on the walls of the house was flaking off in faded pieces, but the yard was well groomed with the lawn mowed and a rocking chair sitting on the veranda. Gliding up to the front door, Ziva moved aside for Gibbs to go through the door first and then followed him. Together they moved through the rooms of the house, methodically checking for any unknown threats, a call of 'clear' ringing out with each room checked. As she slipped into the master bedroom, she called out.

"Gibbs!" Seeing him moving in behind her, she continued, "Over there."

Gibbs walked gingerly over to the prone form collapsed next to the bed and crouched beside it. Steeling himself, he rolled it over and almost gagged.

"Tony."


	7. Chapter 7

_"Tony."_

** xxxx**

"Ziva!" Gibbs snapped.

"Calling 911 now, Gibbs."

Gibbs reached over Tony's procumbent form and felt for a pulse. Slowly he picked up a thready pulse under his fingers.

"Tony, can you hear me?" Gibbs called.

"'Mph." Tony mumbled.

Gibbs hid a wince at the dark bruising under the cuts on Tony's body as he took a better look at his agent. Probing gently at his chest he frowned as he felt a rib give a little.

"Damn, Tony. They really did a number on you, huh."

Ziva interrupted a moment later to inform him that the paramedics were on their way. Expected ETA was 30 minutes. At his glare she just shrugged. "We are a long way from the closest town, Gibbs."

"Fine, go get a clean cloth and wet it."

Ziva made no reply merely exiting the room. Gibbs turned back to Tony, slowly taking in the cuts all over his body. Softly he swore again. Those S.O.B's had better be glad they were dead. A minute later Ziva returned and silently handed the cloth over to Gibbs. He took it and dabbed softly, unhurriedly cleaning away the worst of the blood from his face and chest.

"Gibbs." Ziva called.

"What?"

"You need to take a look at this." She replied beckoning towards the partially open door at the far end of the bedroom.

Gibbs rose, his bad knee twinging in protest and walked over to step into the room. His horrified eyes took in the rope on the floor and the pole that Tony had been tied too. The blood on the floor was all too easy to connect to the military issue M9 bayonet lying next to its scabbard on a table in the corner. Anger coloured his voice as he turned back to Ziva.

"Start processing the crime scene."

"We have no equipment, Gibbs."

"Fine then call the Texas branch and put in a request for Special Agent Hamley to handle the case. Make sure they know who it is."

"On it."

Gibbs went back over to Tony and picked up the rag. Wiping at his agent's face Gibbs felt Tony stirring and quickly removed the cloth and spoke.

"Tony, can you hear me?"

"Mmm. 'm 'ere, Boss." He mumbled.

"Alright, stay with me, DiNozzo, the paramedics are on their way. Do you feel like you have any internal injuries?"

"No, just some bruising." Tony croaked. "Water?"

"Sure." Gibbs turned and pulled a bottle of water out of Ziva's backpack. "Slow sips now." he cautioned as he held the bottle to Tony's lips.

When he heard Tony choke he pulled it away and screwed the lid on before placing the bottle back in Ziva's bag. Gibbs picked the cloth back up and went to mop up the water that had spilt when Tony choked on it, only to be stopped dead when Tony flinched away from him. Guilt shadowed Tony's features for a moment before he spoke.

"Sorry, Boss."

Gibbs sighed before replying. "Nothing to apologise for, DiNozzo."

"I flinched away from you, Boss."

"Yeah and you also just spent the last two days or so being beaten by some nut with his eye on revenge. It's to be expected."

"Wow, Boss, didn't know you had it in you."

"What, DiNozzo?" Gibbs tone once again held its usual level of irritation and warning.

"All those caring words and actions, not that you don't care, Boss. I," A soft head-slap cut him off before he could continue.

"Be quiet, DiNozzo, before I make you." Gibbs growled.

"Yes, Boss, thank-you, Boss." Tony replied instinctively, grinning cheekily then wincing as it opened some of the cuts on his face.

Gibbs held the cloth to them and grabbed Tony's head when he tried to move away.

"Hey, stay put."

Tony's eyes strayed to the door and Gibbs turned to see what was there.

"Agent Hamley has confirmed they will be taking the case, Gibbs." Ziva reported as she stood in the doorway.

Gibbs simply nodded and barked out "Where are those medics?"

"They should be here within 5 minutes, Gibbs."

Gibbs just turned back to the cloth in his hand and lifted it to see if the bleeding had stopped. Seeing that it had he pulled the cloth away and left it on the floor noting the sweat standing out on Tony's forehead.

Knowing the younger man needed a distraction he asked the first question he could think of.

"So how old is, Jessica?"

The near panic attack was unexpected as Tony struggled to get to his feet.

"Lorri, Jess. Where are they? Are they alright?" Tony panted his eyes wide.

Gibbs held Tony down and quickly replied. "They're fine, Tony. Hear me, they're fine."

Tony's struggles slackened as he relaxed into Gibbs grip. "What happened?"

"After you got taken we took them down to NCIS and had Ducky check them out. They were both fine, Lorraine gave her statement and left."

"What did she say?" Tony ground out, desperate to know what had happened to his small family.

"She was walking with Jessica down to the park when Randall and his buddy, Lance Corporal Andrew Nixon, grabbed them and chloroformed them. They woke up in a room, were in there for a few minutes when Randall came in told them what to do and hustled them into the car. He drove them down to the meet and you know the rest."

Tony sighed, "And they were both alright?"

"Yes, Tony."

"Good." Tony relaxed completely and closed his eyes. "By the way, eight. She's eight."

Gibbs allowed a small grin to peek through. "She's a looker, must get it from her mom."

"Hey!" Tony exclaimed, his eyes snapping back open. "That's a low blow, Gibbs. Picking on the injured man."

"DiNozzo."

"Yeah, Boss."

"Go to sleep."

"Yes, boss." Tony smiled, softly this time, as the sound of sirens made themselves known in the distance.


	8. Chapter 8

_A few weeks later_

Tony took a deep breath as the hospital doors swung shut behind him.

"Free! Free at last." He crowed triumphantly.

"Shut up, DiNozzo." Gibbs voice cut in from behind him.

"Shutting up, Boss. Are we taking your car?" At Gibbs glare he grinned unrepentantly at him. "Of course, lead the way, O' fearless leader."

Gibbs just shook his head as he led his errant agent across the parking lot to the car waiting for them. One would think he had been in the hospital for a month, not a mere hour to have his stitches out.

Gibbs fished the keys out of his pocket and inserted them into the lock before sliding into the car and reaching over to unlock the passenger door.

"Seriously, Boss. You never lock the door to your house but you lock your car. You have a car broken into or something?" Levelling his agent with an icy glare he suppressed the smile welling up inside.

"Or something, DiNozzo."

"Right, Boss,"

Tony said as he slid gingerly into the passenger seat of the car and buckled his seatbelt.

"Ah, Boss. Could you maybe not drive like a maniac back to my place?"

"You saying I drive like a maniac, DiNozzo?"

"Yes! I mean, no, not that it's a bad thing. It's just..."

"DiNozzo."

"Yeah, Boss."

"Shut-up."

"Shutting up, Boss. Ah, Gibbs, this isn't the way to my house."

"I think I would know that by now."

"But it's not the way to your place either."

Gibbs just glanced over at him. DiNozzo gave up and looked out the window. Then he looked back over at his Boss.

"Can I turn on the radio?"

Gibbs sighed. "Sure, DiNozzo."

The Italian reached over and hit the on switch, the car filling the with the perky guitar chords of Rascall Flatts. He winced and went to change it before yanking his hand away as Gibbs slapped it .

"Ow! What was that for?"

Again there was no response, Gibbs not even dignifying the question with an answer. Soon they pulled up outside a popular bar and restaurant in the middle of D.C.

"Why are we here, Boss?"

"Just get out of the car, DiNozzo."

"On it, Boss."

He clambered out the car and turned to face the door. Gibbs locked the car and strode forward.

"Ya coming?"

"On your six, Boss." Tony replied automatically before trailing along behind Gibbs.

The lights were dimmed slightly and it took Tony's eyes a minute to adjust as he slowly took in the wood walls and floor the whole place decorated with a country theme. There was a bale of hay on the corner of the roof displaying the scene of a wild pig in some bushes, fake chickens standing around them. A fox hung over the handle bars of an old bike suspended from the rafters, various license plates were nailed around the walls creating a warm atmosphere that Tony felt instantly drawn too. There were vintage posters on the walls advertising movies of a by-gone era and at a table in the corner of the room was his family. Walking up to them he spoke, "Guys, what are you doing here?" He turned to look at Abby. "Actually, why am I here?"

"Why are you looking at me?" She protested.

"Because you probably arranged and organised it all, whatever it may be."

She pouted for a moment then smiled.

"Guilty, now come and sit down before you fall down."

"Come on, Abs. Surely I don't look that bad." At her raised eyebrow he shrugged. "Okay, so maybe I do. Scoot over then."

Abby obediently shifted over and Tony slid in next to her, Gibbs sitting opposite them. Tony looked up and smiled at the other occupants of the table.

"Hey, Ziva, McGoo. Where are Jess and Lori?"

"They should be here any minute my dear boy." Ducky replied coming up to the table.

"Ducky!"

"Yes, hello, Tony. Oh, Jimmy asked me to offer his apologies as he was unable to make it tonight."

Tony went to reply but was interrupted by the arrival of the last of their small family. Tony hurried over and kissed Lori on the cheek before scooping Jess up in his arms.

"Hello, gorgeous, and how's my little munch-kin today?"

Jess giggled and replied. "Daddy! Put me down."

"Now why would I do that?" Tony grinned before swooping her up and placing her feet back down on the ground. He turned to sit back down but stopped at the grins on each member of his team, even Gibbs was smirking slightly. "What?"

"That was just so cute!" Abby squealed.

The colour rose in Tony's face before he could stop it and he could feel the heat flushing the skin around his collar bone.

"Well, yes." Tony stumbled. "Here you guys take a seat." He turned back to Lori and gestured towards the table. Once they were all seated Abby decided to put him out of his misery.

"Happy Birthday, Tony!"

"My birthday was two weeks ago though, Abby."

"Well, we were going to have it the night Randall rang but you know what happened then and then we figured it would be better to wait till you had most of your stitches out and were feeling a little better."

"Well, I am honoured but you shouldn't have."

"Tony when was the last time you celebrated your birthday?" This one came from Ziva.

"Last year." He protested. "Lori and Jess bought me a gift and we got take-out for dinner." Ziva just stared at him. "Fine;" Tony sighed, and then grinned at the assembled members of his family, his heart swelling with contentment. "So Abby what are we doing?"

"Well, I was thinking..."


End file.
